From Fledgling to Eagle – The South African Air Force During the Border War by Brig-Gen Dick Lord

From Fledgling to Eagle – The South African Air Force During the Border War is Brigadier-General Dick Lord’s account of the SAAF’s part in the long conflict in Angola and South West Africa, with a foreword by Colonel Jan Breytenbach. This is the first edition hardcover, published by 30° South Publishers in Johannesburg in 2008 and printed and bound by Pinetown Printers in Durban.

In From Fledgling to Eagle, Lord traces how more than two decades of combat turned the SAAF into a formidable strike force, covering the major South African Defence Force operations of the war from Ongulumbashe through to the final clashes of 1989. Drawing on his own operational reports and diaries, he brings in the experiences of aircrew from across the squadrons, from Mirages, Buccaneers and Impalas to transport aircraft and helicopters, and shows how closely the air force worked with the Parabats, Recces and other ground units.

Written by a career fighter pilot who served at the heart of the SAAF, From Fledgling to Eagle is regarded as one of the essential works on the air war over Angola. The book was later reissued in paperback, which makes the original 2008 hardcover the edition collectors look for.

From Fledgling to Eagle will appeal to readers of South African military and Border War history, military aviation enthusiasts, former SAAF and SADF members, and collectors of military Africana.

Condition – Near Fine

A near fine copy of From Fledgling to Eagle with no notable defects to the book or the dust jacket. The blue cloth boards are clean, with bright silver titling to the spine, and the binding is firm. The illustrated dust jacket is bright and clean, with the original bookseller’s price label on the rear panel. The text pages are clean throughout.